Storm Brewing
by Rhasa aka Sarah
Summary: Early Days in Terminal City. Max Alec Logan showdown angst
1. Default Chapter

TITLE: Storm Brewing

AUTHOR: Rhasa

RATING: PG 13

KEYWORDS: **ANGST** Max Alec Logan showdown

SUMMARY: Are some truths better not known? Early days in TC.

ARCHIVE: no.

DISCLAIMER: Not owned by me. James Cameron et al. No money being made.

NEW EMAIL: 

WARNING **ANGST Read at own risk (which means don't flame the angst – flame everything else if you must but not the angst - S)**

Storm Brewing

By Rhasa

"Damnit, that's just not an excuse, Mole and you know it!" Max spat as she slamed her fist on the command centre table.

"I'm not trying to excuse his behaviour," Mole snarled back.

"Yes you are, or at the very least you're trying to excuse yours!" She pointed an angry finger at the lizard man in front of her.

"What the flying fig are you getting at?" 

"You're in charge of weapons," she said, hands now placed frimly on her hips. "Tell me, how did he get hold of the gun, in the first place?"

"That's not fair, Max," Mole said in a warning tone.

"This has got nothing to do with being fair-"

"Max-" Alec said her name in a warning tone. He did not want the argument that had been roaring through the commane centre for the past fifteen minutes to escalate any further. Challenging Mole on his handling of TCs weapons was one sure way to do just that. Alec knew full well that Max was using this latest 'incident' to vent some of her general frustration.

"He shot over the perimeter fence, Alec! He almost started an all out shoot out with the Seattle PD, Military and god knows how many tranie haters who have been itching for some action ever since we've holed up here!"

"Max, he's young. He was only trying to get some food," Logan waded in. "The anomolies need fresh meat and supplies are running out pretty fast. Rat is as good a source of protein as anything else in a pinch."

"His rat hunt almost caused a war for us!" Max yelled again.

Max's tirade was a distraction for all in the command centre for a good half hour. Her outburst was kind of expected by those close to her. The toll of keeping the Seattle PD and military at bay for the last three weeks since the siege in TC had began had started to show on the self appointed leader. They were all trying to find their feet. They were all trying to help. But there was so much to organise, that it was easy to feel hopeless and despondent. At the end of of the latest 'straw that broke the camels back' all aprticpants were exhausted. Mole, Logan, Alec and even Dix had tried to get Max to see reason, to see that the anomolie in question was not the brightest crayon in the box and as a result of never having had munitions training had not even realised that his shot would go over the perimeter fence.

"I can't tell you just how damn lucky we are that the only casualty was a Seattle PD car window," was Max's final word on the subject.

Alec sighed and scrubbed a hand over his face. More than once he had tried to wade in to get Max to see reason, but in the end he was resigned to let her fury run its course. He smiled slightly to himself as she left the command centre, thinking that it wouldn't be long before hurricane Max would be building up again.

"I know what it's like,you know," Logan said to Alec after all the others had gone.

"Know what's what like?" Alec said somewhat disinterested as he began gathering papers from the table.

"To want something you can't have."

Alec looked up. "Whatcha you talking about?" he asked, slightly supiscious of the older man's tone. A few times in the last week, Alec had caught Logan looking at him. At first he had suspected that Logan was eyeing him with contempt for supposedly stealing Max away from him. The whole "Max and Alec together' ruse had worn on Alec's nerves for the first few days, but after that, everyone had been so busy with the day to day struggle of trying to stay alive, that the relationship equilibrium had pretty much returned to normal. But that hadn't stopped Logan from giving him strange looks from time to time. It had made Alec feel like some sort of bug under a microscope.

"I know you two aren't really together. I suspect now that you never really were," Logan said casually.

"Logan-" Alec sighed, ready for the confrontation that was inevitably to follow. He had suspected all would come out in good time, especially after he had caught Max holding Logan's hand when they had raised the TC flag.

"I don't know what I was thinking when I came up with the idea that you two were an item," Logan confessed. "I'll never forgive myself for not trusting her. It's just..... well, I can rattle off how I had just gotten over being infected with the virus, how it was all too hard, how I was angry with Manticore, the world, even you. I never thought I was the jealous type. But when I saw her with you that morning, it was like a lightbulb flashing above my head. I had already lost so much, the use of my legs, the right to touch her and at the time, thiking that I had lost her to you just fit in to the anger and depression all too well. Truth was, and I can admit it now, I was always jealous of you, your strength, your closeness-"

Alec threw up a hand. "Max and I are not now, and have never been, close-"

"Maybe not in some ways, but you share so many similarities. Face it Alec, you're everything I'm not."

"Logan she lov-"

"I'm not looking for your pity," the older man declared.

"And you're not going to get it," Alec countered. "Look man, I'm just trying to tell you the facts. I didn't want any part of this little game she's been playing."

"I believe you."

"She only did it to protect you, to keep you safe. I never agreed with her reasons for doing it, but I understood the way she felt."

"And I think I finally understand the way you feel."

"What are you talking about?"

"Like I said, I know what it's like to want something you can't have. It's the way I feel about Max. It's the way I felt the first year we knew each other when we stupidly put so much distance between us. It's the same way I felt when she came back from Manticore and we learnt about the virus. And it's the way I felt when she first told me, when I believed you two were together. I've always wanted her, but for many reasons I've never really had her."

"And your point is?"

"As I said, I think I finally understand the way you feel..... but there's just this one thing. One more thing I need to.... have to know, Alec...."

"What more is there to know?"

"Are you in love with Max?"

"What?" Alec choked.

"I'm asking for an honest answer," Logan said seriously.

"Logan, you're insane."

"I don't think I am. In fact, I'm pretty sure I'm not. We've been stuck here inside Terminal City for the past three weeks. Plenty of time for me to watch you two together. See how you operate. You two work well together. I don't quite know what it is about you two that demands such respect from the others. You organise, you command, the way you've brought order to the chaos you all find yourselves in is impressive."

"It's just work, Logan. It's what we were born to do."

"Yeah, I know. But it's not the times that you two are togther that makes me wonder. I see you Alec, in the command centre, watching her from across the room, tracking her every move. I see the concern, the worry, the admiration in your eyes when you watch her, when you know she isn't looking at you. I see you lift your head a little every time you hear her voice. I see the faint smile on your lips when she's barking orders. I see you grimace when late at night she stretches her neck side to side trying to release the knots and kinks that have formed there from all the stress she's under. I've even she you take a few steps towards her, hands slightly raised as if intended to free her from that tension. I see you straighten up whenever she approaches me. I hear that you are always in the docks waiting for her when she returns from a heist. You're never too far away. Your drawn to her, Alec. Just like I was. Just like I am."

"She's our leader, Logan," Alec stated. "We all look out for her."

"No. How you act, it's not quite the same as just looking out for someone. I know, Alec. I know, because the looks you give her, even when she's not watching, are the looks I used to give her. So I ask again, because I have to know...... I have to know what I'm up against, 'cause I'm telling you, I'll fight for her, Alec. I'm not going to make any more mistakes. I'm not going to be noble and do what's 'best'. No. I'm going to fight for her. I'll fight the virus. I'll fight Manticore. I'll fight White and his breeding cult. I'll fight the rest of Seattle, the whole "Trannie hating world". And I'll fight you, Alec. If you love her, I'll fight."

............

Author's Note:

Don't flame me for the angst – it's what I do. If you don't like it, don't read anything else of mine and I did warn you.

Reviews yeah. Sorry, but I'm another one of those really annoying 'beg you to review my stuff' junkies. I just can't seem to break the habit sigh . Love to enter a dialogue with you on just about anything DA. 

Okay, this little piece comes from a thought I had about a toussle between Logan and Alec for Max that would occur behind Max's back (because face it, she would kill them if she found out). I suppose it could possibly be similar to my "Between a Rock and a Hard Place" series, but as I make these things up as I go along who knows what the hell would happen. I'd like to see how Logan would "woo" (for want of a better word) Max away from Alec. Would Logan stand a chance?

This gives me another idea. It might be fun if a M/L writer wrote the Logan wooing part and a different M/A writer wrote the Alec part – now there would be a war of words. I can't imagine how that would turn out. Just a thought....

For those of you who want to know what happened to "Today They Won the Battle" series well, it's too painful to talk about...... but I will anyway. I got this nasty computer virus that wiped six chapters yet to be published on the web. It now seems that I have no way of recovering them (I will be using back up disks from now on – stupid that I didn't before. Argh!). I also had to change email accounts. I had sent a few chapters out to faithful readers ahead of time, but I do not know who might have received them. If you did can you please let me know? Thanks


	2. Chapter 2

STORM BREWING PART 2

Rating T (PG 13)

Disclaimer: Property of someone else. Not me. Cameron and Eglee. No money being made. No infringement intended.

Storm Brewing Part 2

By Rhasa

"We all look out for her," Alec said.

"No. How you act, it's not quite the same as just looking out for someone. I know, Alec. I know, because the looks you give her, even when she's not watching, are the looks I used to give her. So I ask again, because I have to know…… I have to know what I'm up against, 'cause I'm telling you, I'll fight for her, Alec. I'm not going to make any more mistakes. I'm not going to be noble and do what's 'best'. No. I'm going to fight for her. I'll fight the virus. I'll fight Manticore. I'll fight White and his breeding cult. I'll fight the rest of Seattle, the whole "Trannie hating world". And I'll fight you, Alec. If you love her, I'll fight."

For a moment Alec just stared at Logan, his mind processing the older man's accusations. Could some of what Logan was saying be true? His mind whirring he entertained the thought, if only momentarily.

Max had impressed him these past few weeks - that he couldn't deny. The way she had taken up the fight; the way she had brought all of them together; the way she had insisted that there should be a future for them all; that there 'would' be a future for them all, had stirred something deep inside him. If he had have had an opportunity to analyse those thoughts he would have realised that for the first time since leaving Manticore he felt he was part of something bigger than himself – he had felt hope. Max had given him hope, when no one or nothing else had. Part of Logan said was true. He had been watching her somewhat in awe. She had impressed him, she had inspired him. And he was determined to be there for her, to give her support. Alec couldn't deny that her persistence and strength captivated him but was that all there was to it?

His eyes flicked back to Logan, still uncomfortable with the uncertainties that the older man had made him realise. Choosing not to concentrate on those thoughts he turned his attention to the challenge that Logan had jut thrown down. He couldn't help it. For some reason the image of Logan dresed in 18th century garn throwing down a hankerchief in contempt flashed acrossed his mind. Logan always did seem a little like a 'dandy' in his eyes.

Alec smiled. It wasn't as if he hadn't been challenged before. He was definitely no stranger to confrontation – but an ordinary? And an ordinary who knew exactly who and what he was, no less. Logan must be out of his mind, he thought, as an anger took over him

Alec chuckled, alittle. He couldn't help it. "You'll fight me, Logan? You wouldn't stand a chance," he said pinning Logan with a sudden stern look before he could stop himself.

"Not physically, no," Logan answered. "I'm a realist, well of sorts," he added with a shrug. "I know it wouldn't take much for you to take me out. It would be a cinch for a guy like you to snap my neck."

"A guy like me?"

"An assassin."

"I'm not an assassin," Alec said, trying to shake off the accusation.

"Sure you are. It's what you were born to do."

"Look-" Alec began angrily before Logan pushed on.

"Don't worry. I know that you wouldn't; that you wouldn't take the easy option. There's no thrill in eliminating someone that is so obviously inferior to you, at least in the physical sense. I doubt you could hold your head higher than two inches off the ground if you did. I don't have any delusions of grandeur, Alec. When I say I'll fight you, I don't mean it figuratively. I never could. I mean that I will never give up, never lose hope, never stop loving Max or wanting her, or needing her, and most importantly, never stop reminding her of that fact. I'm determined, no matter what it takes, to be in her life."

"You better watch yourself there, buddy," Alec warned.

A confused Logan, gave him a look.

"What you're describing would be considered 'stalking' in 42 states," Alec explained.

Logan smirked. "You think I'm being overdramatic?"

Alec merely shrugged.

"Well call it what you will," Logan continued." All I know is that I'm not prepared to lose her again, Alec."

Alec couldn't help it. Logan's tone had made him incredibly angry, incredibly defensive.

"That's assuming she has you back." The words fell out of Alec before he could stop them. "I mean…. You gotta wonder."

"What?"

"Well, as I said Max concocted this whole 'us together' thing to protect you. But there are other ways to put some distance between you two. Other less painful ways. She could have just pretended to break up with you for no other reason than it was just too hard. But-"

"But she added you to the mix."

"Exactly. Which to a cocky, arrogant egotistical, son-of-a-bitch like me, maybe says something."

Alec watched as a muscle in Logan's neck spasmed. He couldn't quite believe he was goading him like he was. The last thing he had wanted was to get into a pissing competition with Logan. But for some reason he just couldn't help himself. He had never backed down froma challenge before, and he was damned if he was going to back down now – and to Logan of all people.

"I mean, maybe it's nothing," he continued a smug tone in his voice. "Maybe she would have used any other guy to fuel the delusion. Hell, if Sketchy had stopped by that morning for some god-knows reason, maybe it would be him you'd be having this conversation with right now. But…… well, we were designated breeding partners at Manticore. We were perfectly matched for procreation. They don't match you if there isn't a tendency to be highly attracted to the prospective mate. In that sense there's definitely chemistry there – at least on a biological chromosonal, genetic matching kind of way."

"So you admit you were attracted to her then?" Logan asked.

"Logan you're a clever guy. Think about it. Any man would have been attracted to her and to say otherwise would make them a liar or gay. She's gorgeous. She's perfect. She's everything a guy could want."

"But is she what you still want?"

"You're going to make me say the words?"

"You're an X5 Alpha male, Alec." Logan reminded him as he pinned him with a glare. "I can't make you do anything."

"Damn straight," Alec replied emphatically.

"But I'm still asking," Logan pushed.

"There's a difference between want and love, Logan," Alec said as he got up from the table once more, signalling that he had had enough of this particular conversation. "You gotta ask yourself. Before you go assuming things about other people, you should ask yourself one question. Do you want her because you really love her, or because you just can't have her?"

Logan seem to ponder the question for the briefest of moments before he straightened himself and replied in a warning tone. "I'm telling you here and now, Alec. I'll get her back. I'll do whatever it takes."

"Whatever it takes. huh?" Alec asked.

"Yes."

"We'll see about that," Alec muttered, before turning and walking away.

TBC….. maybe?

Should I try to go on? I just don't know where this could go. Any suggestions?

Drop me a line at rhasa underscore aka underscore sarah at yahoo dot com or simply hit review.

Til next time Sarah


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